Originally written for the With a Burning Heart Contest.
I own nothing except a pair of Asics with a few hundred miles on them.
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I was mesmerized by the flurry of activity before me. I'd watched Edward curl more times than I could ever remember. From the beginning of our relationship I knew how important the game was to him. I watched practices, local matches and tri-county bonspiels. I'd even tried my own hand at it.
But this, this was the culmination. This was the 2010 Winter Olympics and Edward was representing the United States as an Olympic curler.
People often gave me an odd look when I told them that Edward curled. Only in recent years had the sport been brought into the spotlight. Most people knew that it involved stones and sweeping.
They didn't see the beauty, the strategy.
"Chess on ice." Edward called it. It wasn't as simple as sliding a stone from one end to the other. It involved a combination of physics, physical strength and stamina, and skill. A gentleman's game as it was often referred. Player's were in charge of calling their own fouls, never celebrating the other team's errors and the winners always bought the losing team's beer.
Edward was the skip for Team USA. His role was to stand at the far end of the ice and guide the other players. He would line up shots with his broom and yell out instructions to the sweepers. Unfortunately for my dirty mind, most of the time he was yelling out 'harder'.
Jasper was getting ready to throw his first stone. As the vice skip, he was the second to last player to throw. Edward was kneeling at the far end, his broom vertical indicating where Jasper needed to line up his shot. He slid smoothly across the ice, letting the stone go gently. Edward stood and began to yell at the sweeps. His shouts filled the arena and I got goose bumps from hearing his commanding voice. The throw was successful as it knocked one of Canada's stones from the house.
Canada threw next, their stone landing just in front of the house guarding one of their scoring rocks. Jasper's second delivery was right on target, knocking the guarding stone out of the way.
Canada's skip threw his stone straight, the sweepers stopping it just before the house. Edward would have to throw carefully. Team USA had two stones in the house, Canada three. He needed to get at least one of the stones out for them to have a chance at winning.
His first throw was beautiful. I watched his graceful slide, the fluid release of the stone and his follow through as he slid past the hog line. It was up to Carlisle and Emmett now, sweeping at Jasper's orders.
The stone curled perfectly and with enough speed to bump two of Canada's stones. One slid out of the house, the other moved further back but not completely out. I took a deep breath and grabbed Alice's hand. Canada had one throw left, then it was up to Edward.
Canada threw their last stone, using it to knock one of USA's out of the house. Edward would need his stone to land in the house to win.
He knelt down, taking his throwing position. Jasper had his broom lined up at the other end and gave Edward a nod. This was it.
Edward threw the last stone and I held my breath. His delivery was good as he slid from the hack, releasing the stone just before the line. Jasper began to yell out his instructions, Emmett and Carlisle sweeping once again at his command. Alice clutched my hand tightly, her eyes on Jasper as he called out to the sweeps. Edward was standing at his end watching the action unfold. There was nothing more that he could do but rely on the members of his team to get his stone in the right position.
Edward's stone bumped Canada's sending it on a skewed path outside of the house. The collision stopped his stone dead center. I couldn't believe it. They had won! Team USA had won the gold medal!
Alice and I were jumping up and down on the sidelines trying to maintain some show of good sportsmanship. We watched as the teams shook hands, exchanges of "Good curling" filling the air. Once they had cleared the ice we took off in the direction of the team. They were surrounded by other fans, friends and family, shaking hands and hugging. I ran directly for Edward completely in awe of the look on his face. He had finally achieved his dream. I was so proud of him. He opened his arms and I jumped up, my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck. He squeezed me with all of his strength.
"I'm so proud of you baby." I whispered in his ear.
"I couldn't have done it without you." He replied back. I couldn't stop the tears from forming as I took it all in, the wet drops marking his Team USA jacket.
I pulled back slightly and Edward let my legs slide to the floor. He brought his hands to my face and used his thumbs to wipe away my tears.
"You just won a gold medal in the Olympics, Mr. Cullen. What are you going to do now?"
He smiled at me and thought for a moment.
"I'm going to go back to the hotel and make love to the woman of my dreams." I blushed at his comment but was more than happy to oblige.
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It took us two hours to get back to the hotel. Although curling wasn't the most popular sport, a gold medal win was as good as any for the United States. I beamed as we made our way back to the hotel, holding on to Edward's hand proudly.
As we entered our room, Edward didn't stop to turn on the light. Instead he immediately pressed me up against the closed hotel door. There was enough light coming through the window from the street lamps so I could partly see him.
He wasted no time in removing my clothes. My jacket and sweater landed in a pile behind him, followed by my pants and undergarments. After he had completely disrobed me, Edward peeled off his layers of clothing. He pulled my naked body to his reveling in the feel of skin against skin. We stood there for quite some time sharing soft kisses. I loved taking his bottom lip between mine and sucking gently, using my tongue to tease.
He carefully walked us backwards to the bed sitting down when he got to the edge. I tried to press him back but instead he turned, guiding me to the pillows at the top. He moved over me kissing down my body. He placed a sweet kiss on my shoulder before moving directly to my breasts. While his mouth worked on my left nipple his fingers tugged on the right. The varying sensations were enough to drive me crazy. I could feel his erection against my leg and I began to shift slightly in hopes of stimulating him ever further. It worked because Edward let out a small moan against my breast.
"Baby, you have no idea what you do to me." He whispered.
"Show me." I whispered back. He sat up straddling my hips and ran his hand from my breasts down to my bare lips. His finger pressed lightly against my clit. I let out a small moan, my hands finding their way to his thighs.
"How?" He asked alternating the pressure. The feeling was driving me insane.
"Inside of me. I need you inside of me." I was moving my hands up and down his thighs trying to touch him but he moved back slightly.
"Like this?" Edward slowly slid one finger inside of me, curling up towards my g-spot. My back arched off the bed.
"No teasing, Edward. I need you inside of me." I whimpered.
"Anything for you, baby." He chuckled. How he was still calm was beyond me. My whole body was on fire in anticipation.
He moved to a kneeling position between my legs spreading them as far as they would go. They were draped over his thighs and his arms were underneath. He roughly pulled my body to his causing him to enter me slightly.
"Are you ready?" I nodded as I moved my arms above me to push off of the headboard and onto his body. He pulled my hips up and guided himself into me.
I loved the feeling of him inside of my body. I always felt complete.
He didn't waste any time and began to thrust deeply. I pushed onto him as hard as I could trying to take him as deep as possible.
He began chanting my name as he sped up. I could tell he was getting close as his grip on my thighs tightened and his thrusting became more erratic.
"God Edward! Yes!" I watched as he brought his thumb to his mouth licking it before moving it down to my clit. The sensation caused my legs to quake and he faltered slightly in his movements.
"Bella, I'm close baby. I need you to come with me." He rasped. I met him thrust for thrust concentrating on his thumb pressing against my clit. I could feel the stirrings of my orgasm deep in my stomach. I let the warmth take over my body as I came hard screaming Edward's name.
He thrust a few more times holding my body to his as he came. I welcomed his weight pressing me deep into the mattress.
"You never cease to amaze me." He said rolling off of me and gathering me into his arms.
We held each other, trying to catch our breath. Minutes passed before we spoke again.
"I'm so happy for you, Edward. You finally have everything you've ever wanted." I said, placing a kiss on his bare chest.
"Not everything." Came his surprising reply. I looked up at his face, not understanding what he meant. "I don't have you."
I frowned at his words.
"Of course you have me." To say I was confused would be an understatement. He pulled me closer to him.
"I want you forever. As my wife. Only then will my life be complete. Everything I have means nothing unless I can share it with you." He brought his hand to my cheek, sliding his thumb across my jaw line. "Marry me."
My breath caught in my throat and my heart was pounding. I could feel tears forming in my eyes.
"Yes!" I answered unable to contain my joy. "Yes, I'll marry you." I brought my hands to his neck and pulled him into a deep kiss trying to convey every emotion I was feeling at the moment.
"I love you so much Bella." He said against my lips, not wanting to break the kiss.
"I love you too Edward." I answered, letting him roll me onto my back.
He started to kiss his way down my body and I relaxed into the pillows ready to enjoy round two of our celebration.